Latest Developments

Europe
BBC Business

Ikea cuts prices in bid to woo cash-strapped customers

Swedish furniture giant Ikea is cutting prices across a range of popular products in Europe, including the Billy bookcase and Kallax storage units, to woo cash-strapped customers. Ikea has seen revenue decline over the past two years as the rising cost of living reduces people's ability to invest in new furniture and home renovations. The company is spending €1.2bn (£1bn) on the price cuts, which represent reductions of up to 28% on certain products. Ikea said it could make the cuts by making savings throughout the supply chain, such as packaging costs. Ingka, the franchisee which operates most of Ikea's European stores, said the cuts were "not an activity or short-term campaign". "It's about making IKEA more affordable when people need it most, even if it means accepting a lower margin," said Juvencio Maeztu, chief executive of Ingka. "The cost of living is increasing and it's getting tougher and tougher for many people." He added: "For many people, home is a bedroom in a shared house, and it's even more important to offer storage and organised solutions." Ikea has reduced its prices several times in recent years, even as it caused a hit to the company's revenue and profit in its most recent earnings report. The latest specific reductions vary slightly by country. Price cuts for British customers include the Kallax shelving unit going from £60 to £49 and the Billy bookcase being cut by £10 to £25. Ikea is also trying to attract new customers by opening smaller stores in central areas, such as London's Oxford Street and Churchill Square in Brighton. In 2024 it launched its own second-hand online marketplace in a bid to rival sites like eBay and Facebook Marketplace. Despite a recent uptick, consumer confidence in Europe is at its lowest level for almost three years due to concerns about inflation and the cost of living, according to EU figures. , external

Ikea cuts prices in bid to woo cash-strapped customers
Europe
BBC Business

Fake 10 Downing Street listing exposes 'unfit' Booking.com, says consumer group

Image source, ReutersByLiv McMahonTechnology reporterPublished2 hours agoConsumer group Which? says it was able to create a fake listing for 10 Downing Street on travel giant Booking.com. The UK watchdog said its researchers were able to book a bogus stay at the prime minister's address - as well as leave a fake review noting "hanging out" with resident mouser Larry the cat as a highlight. It said despite clear signs it was fake, Booking.com did not remove the listing until two months after it was uploaded. "This limited test is not a true reflection of the experience of millions of listings or reviews published on our platform," a Booking.com spokesperson told the BBC. They said because Which?'s listing was not "live" on its site across the two months it was present, "some of our automatic fraud controls were not triggered to completely remove the closed listing". People could only see the listing and request to book the property during a 20-minute window opened by Which? so its researchers could try to book it. Booking.com's spokesperson added "a range of checks and verification measures" help secure the site, and technologies such as AI "help us detect and remove the majority of fraudulent listings within 24 hours". But Which? Travel editor Rory Boland said its checks had been shown to be "unfit for purpose". "If Booking.com's so-called sophisticated AI systems can't spot that 10 Downing Street is not a holiday rental, then it's no wonder scammers can exploit the platform so easily," he said. "It would be laughable that we were able to list the UK's most famous address for rent, if the consequences weren't so devastating for holidaymakers, who risk losing thousands of pounds to bogus listings and phishing links." It is not the first time the site has faced criticism over its security efforts and customer service. Which?'s listing, uploaded to Booking.com on 18 June, advertised a "1 bedroom apartment in the heart of London".

Fake 10 Downing Street listing exposes 'unfit' Booking.com, says consumer group
North America
CNBC Finance

Family offices are making a bullish bet on the stock market, according to CNBC Family Office Portfolio Tracker

Family offices boosted their stock holdings in the second quarter and trimmed their exposure to real estate and private market investments, according to the latest CNBC Family Office Portfolio Tracker. Single family offices held 37% of their portfolios in stocks in the second quarter, up from 34% in the first quarter, according to the CNBC Portfolio Tracker powered by Addepar, the foundational data and artificial intelligence platform used by financial professionals globally. The surge in family office stock holdings is the largest in several years and signals their continued bullishness on the AI trade and equities, despite fears of a bubble and highly concentrated market. "I'd read it as family offices are more comfortable being more highly allocated to public equities," said Addepar CEO Eric Poirier. "The increase in public equities was the biggest quarter-on-quarter shift that we've seen over the over the course of the last three, four years." The CNBC Portfolio Tracker provides a real-time look into the portfolios of single family offices, the private investment arms of wealthy families. While most information on family office investments comes from surveys, Addepar's data reflects the actual portfolios of hundreds of family offices — aggregated and anonymized — representing a total of more than $1.4 trillion in assets. The rise in stocks in the second quarter was offset by a pullback in private markets and real estate. Family office holdings of private companies, real estate, private equity, venture capital and private credit dropped by 3 percentage points. They also drew down their cash piles by less than 1 percentage point in the quarter, suggesting a push to put more of their money to work. While the 3 percentage point swing from alts to stocks is substantial for family offices, and challenges the notion that the richest investors prefer exotic alts over retail-friendly stocks, it was largely the result of market fluctuations rather than active buying and selling. The rally in stock markets in the second quarter — with the S&P 500 up about 15% during the quarter — powered their stock gains. The declines in private market valuations, led by troubles in private credit, brought down their allocations to alts. Yet family offices are letting their stock allocations grow as a share of their portfolio, rather than rebalancing, suggesting a long-term bullish tilt to stocks. Poirer said the AI trade is likely driving much of the interest. "The AI thematic bet is getting so much action and so much activity, and it's being expressed in large part in public markets versus private markets," he said. The top five most commonly held stocks by family offices in the second quarter were Microsoft, owned by 77% of family offices, followed by Amazon and Alphabet (76%), Apple (70%) and Nvidia (69%). In private markets, family office allocations to alternatives fell to 46% from 49% in the second quarter, the largest drop in years. Addepar said the decline was mainly driven by private credit funds marking down the values of their assets. Fully 18% of recent vintage private credit funds (vintages 2020 or later) have posted markdowns in net asset values, according to Addepar. That compares with an average of 9% in write-downs for private credit funds with vintages of 2016 or later through the first four years of the lifecycle. "We're not actually seeing changes in inflows or outflows," Poirier said. "It's more just where family offices are marking their private holdings."

Family offices are making a bullish bet on the stock market, according to CNBC Family Office Portfolio Tracker
Europe
BBC Business

Will self-flying planes transform the skies?

Over an alfalfa field in California's San Joaquin Valley, a small crop-spraying plane is flying scarily low to the ground. There's little risk to humans though, as the plane is pilot-free. "We can actually go lower than a human pilot can," says Russ Marotzke, as the aircraft skims over the crop. Flying lower means less spray drift and therefore less chemicals are needed than in conventional manned crop-dusting, he says. The pilotless plane belongs to Pyka, where Marotzke works as a flight test engineer. Based in a converted Second World War hangar overlooking San Francisco Bay, the start-up makes self-flying aircraft without cockpits, designed either to spray crops or deliver cargo. It is among a small group of companies racing to bring autonomous fixed-wing aircraft into commercial service. Flying urban air taxis, so called electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, have captured much of the attention around autonomous aviation. But a quieter race is also under way to deploy self-flying planes, first for jobs like crop spraying and cargo delivery – and eventually, many of their makers hope, carrying passengers too. "A fully scaled, ubiquitous passenger operation is the holy grail," says Michael Norcia, Pyka's co-founder and CEO, who envisions a large fleet of minibus-capacity Pyka planes ferrying passengers up and down the US east and west coasts. I've come to one of Pyka's crop-sprayer test sites, about 80km (50 miles) east of the company's factory and reached by a bumpy dirt road. Today, Marotzke and a colleague are trying out a software update on a demonstration aircraft. About a dozen Pyka aircraft are already in Brazil where they are used to spray crops such as cotton and soybeans, work previously carried out by human pilots.

Will self-flying planes transform the skies?
Europe
BBC Business

Soft launches and late sittings - six ways to get cheaper meals out

Image source, Getty ImagesByJemma CrewBusiness reporter Published4 hours agoThe price of eating out can be hard to swallow while the cost of living remains high, with more than a third of Brits cutting back on going to restaurants, according to YouGov's latest Dining Out report., external Restaurateurs say the rising cost of food, energy, wage and tax bills mean they've had to put up prices, with some top chefs campaigning for government help. Many eateries are offering incentives to get diners through the doors. Here are some ways to save money on meals out. Many restaurants offer points, freebies, discounts and birthday treats to keep customers coming back. One of the most well-known is the Pizza Express Club. Regular diners can progress through a bronze, silver and gold system unlocking perks from free dough balls to hot and soft drinks on the house. Nando's uses a chilli system for its loyalty programme, while other schemes such as Tastecard offer discounts at hundreds of eat-in and takeaway venues in exchange for an annual fee. Restaurants often want to fill seats outside of peak lunch and dinner hours so opting for earlier or later sittings can be rewarded by a cheaper bill. Apps such as First Table, which operates across 21 UK cities, as well as Ireland, New Zealand and Australia, give diners 50% off food when they book a participating restaurant's first or last dining slot. In exchange, diners pay a small booking fee. EatClub is another, giving walk-ins up to 50% off the whole bill at thousands of venues when they redeem an offer within its app. The biggest discounts are at off-peak times. Shokofeh Hejazi, director of foresight and innovation at global trends agency The Food People, says earlier dining appeals because it tends to be quieter and calmer, people drink less and it allows them to get home sooner. Meeting up for breakfast also tends to be a bit more wallet-friendly as it's usually just one course and diners get the same catch-up time with friends and family, she adds. In the school holidays, many places will entice families through their doors by offering free or £1 meals for kids eating with paying adults.

Soft launches and late sittings - six ways to get cheaper meals out
Europe
The Guardian

‘If it’s made in the US, I don’t buy it’: Canadians on boycotting Trump’s America

A sign in a liquor shop in Vancouver, British Columbia promotes native Canadian alcohol. Photograph: Chris Helgren/ReutersView image in fullscreenA sign in a liquor shop in Vancouver, British Columbia promotes native Canadian alcohol. Photograph: Chris Helgren/ReutersInternational trade‘If it’s made in the US, I don’t buy it’: Canadians on boycotting Trump’s AmericaAvoiding US goods and services – from tech to whisky to air travel – has forced many to find a new way of living For William McDonald, 38, a diesel mechanic from Thunder Bay, Ontario, “Canadian is always the first choice,” even if it means his weekly bills are higher. “As soon as Trump started putting those tariffs on in February [last year], I started boycotting US goods,” he said. “Avoiding American products has driven my costs up, and I’m still happy to do it. “I used to drink US beer, but now I drink Canadian beer, and that costs me an extra C$1,000 (£531/US$720) a year. Likewise, groceries cost about C$50 more a week, but you work that extra hour to pay for it.” McDonald likened Donald Trump’s behaviour towards Canada as “a lot like the schoolyard bully yelling and stomping their feet when they don’t get the cowering reaction they expect”. View image in fullscreenA shop poster in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Photograph: Artur Widak/NurPhoto/Rex/ShutterstockThis week the US imposed 50% tariffs on US$20bn (£15bn) of Canadian goods, and Mark Carney, the country’s prime minister, has vowed to match them “dollar for dollar” after the collapse of trade talks between the two countries last weekend. Donald Trump retaliated on Thursday by ordering the federal government to rename Lake Ontario to Lake America. Such actions have added fuel to a widespread boycott of US products and services by Canadians that began early last year in response to the president’s trade war and threats to annex his northern neighbour. More than 3,500 people from across Canada shared with the Guardian via an online callout how they have made changes to their lives in response to the US administration’s political and economic stance. Many expressed deep anger and sadness, but remained resolute that this was now a new way of living. View image in fullscreenA ‘Made in Canada’ sign at a liquor store in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. Photograph: Bloomberg/Getty ImagesBuying only Canadian groceries, including fresh produce, and boycotting travel south of the border featured heavily among the responses. Respondents have stopped paying for US technology; streaming services provided by Netflix, AmazonPrime, AppleTV and Disney+; petrol; vehicles such as Teslas; and whiskies including Jack Daniel’s. Social media sites including X, Facebook and Instagram were also being avoided. In July, an Angus Reid survey found 40% of grocery shoppers were actively checking where products came from, and most of those avoiding US products where possible. The ABUS (Anything but US) or ABUSA (Anywhere but USA) acronyms and “Elbows Up!” slogan – a hockey term for offering a stiff defence – began appearing in Canada last year. “I think you need to be in Canada to understand how deep the animosity to the US is … even across the political spectrum,” said Denise from Winnipeg, Manitoba.

‘If it’s made in the US, I don’t buy it’: Canadians on boycotting Trump’s America
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

Bitcoin drops below $80,000 as US jobs data spurs Fed-hike bets

Bitcoin dropped as much as 3.5% after stronger-than-expected US jobs data revived bets on a September Federal Reserve rate hike, abruptly reversing the cryptocurrency’s latest push above $80,000. The token fell to as low as $78,649, alongside stocks and bonds after nonfarm payrolls increased 162,000 in August, topping every estimate in a Bloomberg survey, while the unemployment rate held at 4.1%. Two-year Treasury yields climbed and the dollar strengthened. The reversal gives Bitcoin’s repeated struggle around $80,000 a fresh macro test. The cryptocurrency had reclaimed the level Thursday as falling yields and a weaker dollar buoyed risk assets after Fed Governor Christopher Waller signaled support for holding rates steady if inflation continued to ease. “A clear rebound doesn’t settle the debate, it arms the hawks,” said Fabian Dori, chief investment officer at Sygnum Bank. “A strong print validates current September hike probabilities. But Treasury cash balances, bank balance-sheet capacity, private credit creation and stablecoin supply matter independently of short-term Fed decisions.” Shares or crypto-related companies also declined. Crypto exchange Coinbase Global Inc. dropped around 4%, while Bitcoin accumulator Strategy Inc. and stablecoin issuer Circle Internet Group Inc. each slipped around 1%. Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments. We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.

Bitcoin drops below $80,000 as US jobs data spurs Fed-hike bets
Asia-Pacific
The Straits Times

Glencore was Radiant World’s ‘senior partner,’ executive says

The comments are the latest headache for Glencore stemming from its dealings with Radiant World and related companies, on which it has taken a US$480 million provision – one of its largest trading losses in its history as a public company. The relationship between Glencore Plc and the network of companies linked to Radiant World was one of “senior partner-junior partner,” a top executive at one of the firms alleged in an interview with Bloomberg. Rakesh Sethi, who is chairman of Sapphire Minmetals Corporation, said that Glencore’s relationship with the group was driven by its desire to increase its iron ore trading volumes. “So we were like a partner,” he said. Glencore wanted “more volume, more market control, more customer base”. Sapphire was part of Radiant World until 2015, and Glencore has said it still sees the two companies as one combined group. The companies have both said they are legally separate. The comments from Sethi are the latest headache for Glencore stemming from its dealings with Radiant World and related companies, on which it has taken a US$480 million provision – one of its largest trading losses in its history as a public company. Bloomberg has reported on concerns that Radiant World provided lenders with falsified documents to raise financing. One lender has claimed in court filings that Radiant World sent it contracts with Glencore that the London-listed miner and commodities trader later said were not genuine. Sethi’s comments about the closeness of the group’s relationship with Glencore echo those made by Radiant World itself. In a letter to Glencore last week, lawyers for Radiant World claimed that Glencore had approved its new hires, directed its payments, and advised on fundraising and the pricing of Radiant World’s physical trades. “Glencore organised and structured the arrangements and at all material times acted as the senior partner in the relationship,” according to a copy of the letter seen by Bloomberg. The letter was first reported by the Financial Times. A spokesperson for Glencore said: “These claims are meritless and Glencore will vigorously contest them,” repeating an earlier statement on the claims made by Radiant World. “Glencore has incurred losses and been exposed to risks by Radiant’s actions and will take appropriate action.” A spokesperson for Radiant World did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Radiant World has previously denied wrongdoing and said it conducts its business to the highest commercial and legal standards. Sethi said he had worked for Sapphire since the time when it was still part of Radiant World, which was until 2015. He said that the relationship with Glencore had begun in 2011 or 2012.

Glencore was Radiant World’s ‘senior partner,’ executive says
Asia-Pacific
The Straits Times

US eggs return to Singapore: Will customers shell out up to $14.80 for a dozen?

Contented Hen eggs from the US are now available at more than 50 FairPrice outlets. SINGAPORE – You can now find US eggs at more than 50 FairPrice outlets, with Singapore importers looking to make them available at more supermarkets across the country. The eggs from Contented Hen, a brand specialising in pasture-raised and free-range eggs from farms in the US Midwest, are available at 43 FairPrice Finest supermarkets and eight FairPrice hypermarkets. A pack of 12 free-range white or brown eggs is priced at $12.80, while a pack of 12 organic free-range eggs costs $14.80. Leroy Seow, managing director for products at FairPrice Group, said the supermarket chain currently stocks eggs from 10 markets, including the US, to offer customers variety. The other markets are Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Brunei, Denmark and Ireland. “Eggs are an essential source of protein. The introduction of US eggs further enhances our food supply resilience,” Seow told The Straits Times ahead of a launch event for the eggs on Sept 5. “Ultimately, expanding our sourcing network ensures daily essentials remain available, accessible and within reach for all in Singapore,” he added. The move comes after US egg producers resumed sales to Singapore in July after more than 20 years. The US stopped selling eggs to the Republic in the early 2000s after requirements for imported eggs were tightened. This was the case until earlier in 2026, when US agricultural officials and the Singapore Food Agency agreed on matters including export certification standards and a method to trace eggs if a disease outbreak occurs. Yukako Matsuka, director at Singapore-based consulting firm YCP, which has clients in the grocery retail sector, said the US eggs are competitively priced against other free-range options. She said that Contented Hen’s organic free-range eggs, which cost around $1.23 an egg, are cheaper than organic listings from Australia and New Zealand.

US eggs return to Singapore: Will customers shell out up to $14.80 for a dozen?